The Coronavirus Is Causing A Shortage Of NHL Sticks

While fears of a worldwide epidemic have left people quarantined to ships, hotels, and their homes, there’s another potential fallout from the coronavirus…

The Chinese factories that make many of the NHL’s hockey sticks have reportedly halted production, leading to a shortage. NBC Sports hockey analyst Pierre Maguire made this claim last Thursday, saying he heard from an equipment manager that players are being limited in how many sticks they can use.

The Boston Globe cited figures that 75 percent of sticks are made in China. However, manufacturers disputed that there is a “major shortage”.

“Given the current Chinese government restrictions in place, we have not been able to ship custom sticks, however, the most recent update suggests we can re-start operations February 17,” Ed Kinnaly, CEO of hockey equipment company Bauer said in a statement. “We have backup stock in the U.S. and Canada to meet these needs, and we are working closely with equipment managers to understand their inventory levels and ensure players have what they need throughout this situation.”

The coronavirus has killed more than 1,000 people in China as of Tuesday morning.